European Commissioner for Energy, Kadri Simson, met with Ocean Energy Europe (OEE) October 20 to learn more about the promise and advances of ocean energy. Seabased VP Business Development Marcelle Askew, a member of OEE’s board of directors, was invited to speak about the importance of incorporating wave energy and other ocean energies into the renewable mix rather than relying solely on wind and solar. Currently the percentage of renewables like solar and wind on the grid are extremely limited, less than 10%, globally. One reason is that their intermittency makes it difficult for grid operators to provide a baseload of energy that meets the demand. Consequently, most grids fall back on fossil fuels. Simson has expressed an interest in more aggressively pursuing renewable energy for Europe. By utilizing and optimizing technology for all the different forms of renewables, focusing on those in greatest abundance in a given area, we can balance the variability of one renewable against another, increasing the amount of renewables on the grid. Ocean energy has the potential to provide 400% of current electrical consumption. It needs to be part of the solution. As Askew noted, renewables are #bettertogether.
EU Commissioner Kadri Simson Meets with OEE